Academy Offers Spots to Jackman, Franco

By
Gregg Kilday
| Posted June 30, 2009, 4:44 p.m.

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On Tuesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued invitations to 134 members of the film community to join the group. There were a maximum of 166 open slots to fill this year, but the various branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them.

Hugh Jackman, who hosted the most recent Oscar show, has been invited to join. So have Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, James Franco and Michelle Williams. The list even includes a number of comic performers like Michael Cera, Seth Rogan and Paul Rudd.

Voting membership in the organization has held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003.

New members will be welcomed into the Academy at an invitation-only reception at the Academy's Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study in Beverly Hills in September.

"These filmmakers have, over the course of their careers, captured the imagination of audiences around the world," Academy president Sid Ganis. Said. "It's this kind of talent and creativity that make up the Academy, and I welcome each of them to our ranks."